This article presents new concepts and practical approaches resulting from the piloting of CASI-F – a common framework for the assessment and management of sustainable innovation (SI). Based on lessons learned from action research carried out in the context of the EU funded CASI project, the article focuses on the meta-analysis of 46 action roadmaps produced with 43 innovators supporting the practical application of CASI-F. The applied methodology helped to demonstrate that a multi-level and multi-actor advice approach promotes a shift towards improved understanding of innovations-related critical issues (barriers, drivers, opportunities and threats) and stakeholders’ relations, as well as their management, thus promoting the sustainable resilience and transformation of socio-technical systems. This paper first reflects on how we arrived to managerial lessons from the actions roadmaps and how could these lessons be used to assess the current state of affairs and potential way forward for European initiatives and instruments promoting sustainable innovation.

Unit 12: Policy messages on SI assessment and management – 18 policy messages to better manage and assess sustainable innovation: Benefit from joint lessons and views on the way forward for CASI-F.

Certification

To qualify for a Certificate on ‘Sustainable Innovation Assessment and Management’ , signed by the Course Director from The University of Manchester, you should study and complete all modules (each lasting a maximum of 90 minutes) and score at least 60% in the self-assessment activities provided under each unit. Detailed information about your progress and score will be available under ‘My course’ tab of your user profile where you will also be able to retake each module (no more than once), if needed.

Certificate for satisfactorily completed course – By completing the full course with a 60-79% score in the self-assessment tasks you will receive a certificate of satisfactory completion.

Certificate for outstandingly completed course – By completing the full course with a score of 80% or above in the self-assessment tasks you will receive a certificate of outstanding completion.

Learning outcomes

While the CASI Sustainable Innovation Course offers answers and insights related to four key dimensions of sustainable innovation management (i.e. Context, People, Process, and Impact), one of the primary objectives of the training course is to focus on the ‘People’ dimension, and, in particular, on its two key aspects of ‘aptitude’ and ‘attitude’, which are necessary to promote and more effectively manage sustainable innovations. With this in mind, upon completion of this course, you will understand what sort of prerequisites, knowledge and leadership, among other skills, are needed to improve the sustainability of different types of innovations.

The CASI project (http://www.casi2020.eu/) is running a FREE Policy Dialogue on Sustainable Innovation and Smart Cities in Coventry on the 17th March.

The aim of the workshop is to foster dialogue with policy makers and other key stakeholders on the topic of wider societal engagement in sustainable innovation.

The workshop focuses on Smart Cities policies with structured discussions on key barriers and opportunities to stimulate wider societal engagement in sustainable innovation. Through discussion of the strengths and weaknesses of current policies and praxis we will look to identify areas of improvements or potential strategies that could be undertaken. The session will include a networking buffet lunch.

Ahead of the CASI national stakeholders workshops that would be taking place in 12 European countries in the second half of October, sixteen of CASI country correspondents gathered in Copenhagen (pictures below) at the end of September in order to pre-pilot the CASI Framework (CASI-F) for the assessment and management of sustainable innovation.

The workshop was led by CASI partners: Centre for Social Innovation (ZSI), Applied Research and Communications Fund (ARC Fund) and The University of Manchester (UNIMAN) who ensured a positive and stimulating working environment from the beginning until the end of the meeting.

After the introduction and presentation of the CASI Framework the participants were assigned tasks, the final outcome of which was obtaining valuable feedback directed at improving the usability of the framework.

The framework received very welcoming and constructive opinions from the CASI country correspondents, which helped us further improve the concept in time for the upcoming national stakeholders workshops.

We are now looking forward to hearing stakeholders views from the following stakeholders groups: business, governance, civil society, research and education, and will be back with more news after the workshops.

This conference will be the final event of the VERA Forward Visions on the European Research Area project. The conference is targeted at policy makers at the European level concerned with Science, Technology and Innovation Policies (STIP) and at stakeholder groups having followed and participated in VERA activities before. It is open to experts and everybody interested in the subject.

The VERA foresight process focuses on the European Research and Innovation Landscapes and Governance in 2030. It is – inspired by profoundly different future scenarios – an exercise to look for policy issues we need to prioritize today. In that sense, we are trying to build a consensus among STI stakeholders: Looking out for those issues which appeared repeatedly in the different VERA backcasting approaches with stakeholders in VERA focus groups and the VERA symposium (see pictures below!) as well as in a “policy lensing” analysis done by the VERA team.

The conference will offer these insights relevant for all STI policy makers, and it shall feed and inspire structured debates about the future of the European Research Area (ERA) and the political and societal priorities underpinning its (r)evolution.

The detailed agenda of the event will be made available in the forthcoming weeks.

The VERA project – Forward Visions on the European Research Area – is organising a Symposium on Strategies for European Research & Innovation Futures in Manchester that will serve as a conclusion meeting to a participatory foresight process initiated earlier this year, whereby seven stakeholders’ groups (a selected representation of Society, Academy, Industry, Research funders, ERA instruments experts, Policy-makers and International RTDI actors) discussed on the future of the ERA by 2030 drawing on four exploratory scenarios. We are very pleased to invite you to take part in this event, to be held at The Lowry on October 23-24 (click here to download Symposium Agenda).

We have 40+ registered participants and there a few more places available. If you would like to join us, please contact Siobhan.Drugan@manchester.ac.uk by October 17th. For additional information about the programme, feel free to contact the symposium organiser at Rafael.Popper@mbs.ac.uk.